Play it by ear means to decide as you go, depending on how things turn out. The phrase helps when you don't want to plan in advance or can't: let's see how it goes and decide then. The literal meaning is also common: play a song by ear means to play a tune from hearing it, without sheet music. The idiom is conversational; in an essay, be flexible is a better choice.
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play it by ear; let's (just) play it by ear; play + a song/tune + by ear
- The weather in the mountains changes quickly, so we'll play it by ear and decide each morning.
- We'll see how tired the kids are after lunch and play it by ear from there.
- She can't read music, but she can play almost any song by ear.
What changed
First versionWe haven't made any plans for Saturday, so we'll play it on ear.
RevisionWe haven't made any plans for Saturday, so we'll play it by ear.
On may seem to fit, but in English the preposition here is always by, both in the idiom and in the literal meaning: play a song by ear. Only on was changed to by.
Play it by ear means not making a plan in advance and deciding as you go, depending on the circumstances. A similar expression, wing it, means doing something without preparation and hoping it works out: I hadn't read the book, so I winged it in the seminar. The first sounds sensible; the second sounds rather risky.
Your turn
We haven't booked any hotels for our road trip; we'll ___ and stop wherever we like.
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play it by ear — No hotels are booked, and the travellers will decide where to stop along the way, so play it by ear fits. Be all ears means “listen carefully”, but this sentence isn't about listening to someone; it's about the trip plans.
Write a message to a friend about a weekend you haven't planned yet. Say what the decision will depend on and suggest two possible activities.
Let's play it by ear on Sunday: if it's sunny, we can cycle to the lake, and if it rains, we'll watch a film at my place.
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